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Monday, December 09, 2013

New Zealand Diary - Queenstown, TSS Earnslaw

Saturday, October 26, 2013

One of the places Bob wants to eat at while in Te Anau is
Miles Better Pies. He found it to be the number one spot on Tripadvisor. They
make fresh meat pies daily and are well-known. Unfortunately they were closed
before we got into town the first afternoon and we were in Milford Sound all
the next day. So we have decided to forgo a hot breakfast at The Shakespeare
House and stop for breakfast pies on the way out of town this morning. We fill
our old McDonald’s take away cups with our B and B’s great coffee and find our
way to the pie place.

Yesterday morning we had noticed a huge line as we passed by
but this morning there are only a couple of people there when we arrive. We ask
for bacon and egg pies and each is put into a small brown bag. Each pie is
about five inches in diameter with a crusty top and bottom that flakes better
than the best filo. Since the rain is still with us, we sit in the car and eat
our pies and enjoy our second cups of coffee. When we’re done, we have to turn
on the defroster and clear the windows. It got pretty steamy in there—from the
pies!

We set Lady Garmon for our Queenstown destination. Except
for a couple of minutes of sunshine, we have rain most of the way. There is no
stopping for a morning walk today. We are tired of the rain and cold so we just
continue on until we arrive at Queenstown.

Queenstown is a surprise. The city is full of all sorts of
motels and hotels and accommodations of all kinds. It is a resort town and
mainly for the winter months when the surrounding ski areas are open for
business. It sits on a large lake, Lake Wakatipu. The views of the surrounding
mountains are spectacular when the clouds part and let you peak at them.

We check in to our room at the Amity Lodge Motel and to our
delight find that it is more like an apartment. As we assess its size we agree,
it is probably bigger than the first apartment we lived in back in our college
days. This will do nicely especially since we probably won’t be out and about a
whole lot unless the weather improves.

The Information Centers in town (one for the area and one
for the city) don’t offer us much hope of something to do, good weather or bad,
unless we want to bungee jump, do a canyon swing (swing over a canyon on some
contraption), go shopping, experience a jet boat ride. . .well, you get the
picture. It’s a resort town and they have to offer something when the skiing is
done. The gondola ride to the top of the mountain would be great if you could
see the top of the mountain.

Eventually we opt for a ride on an old steamboat, the TSS
Earnslaw. The ride takes you on a forty-five minute trip to the historic
homestead of Walter Peak where you can see sheep sheared and have tea at the
cafe there and wander around the homestead. We opt out of that part and just
purchase the ride tickets to stay out of the rain.

As our steamship pulls away from the dock, we are wished farewell by a band on wheels. There is supposed to be a jazz festival on the city square this weekend but it too has been dampened by all the rain. Gotta love their enthusiasm though.

The TSS Earnslaw is certainly worth a good look around. The TSS at the
beginning of the name stands for Twin Screw Steamer. It was built in 1912 to
service remote farming areas around the lake. In the early days it was mainly a
cargo ship and once the road access to the area improved, she was used less and
less. In 1969, Real Journeys, the tour company that now operates her (and the one we used for Milford Sound), purchased
the steamship and began operating her as a tourism venture. The decks were
restored to reflect the earlier period . TSS Earnslaw is named for the mountain
at the end of the lake and she has been dubbed “the Lady of the Lake.”

The middle of the upper salon is open to the engine room and
you can watch the engines at work as well as the fellow who shovels the coal
into the three furnaces that keep the steam heated. It is amazing how fast this
boat moves with the steam power. The wood and brass trim as well as the
upholstery in the fancy salon on the lower deck are reminiscent of the period
of the beginning of the steamboat’s service 101 years ago.

We pass a peaceful hour and a half going to the homestead
and back and most importantly, staying dry. On the way back there is a piano
player in the front of the salon but his music is hard to hear over the steam
engine between us and him.

Back on land, I suggest we get some takeaway for dinner. We
have a microwave we can warm things in and I really don’t want to go out again
once we get back to the apartment. I am chilled to the bone. In a small mall,
we find a food court with a Japanese takeaway and order two meals plus miso
soup. It’s a bit of a walk back to the car with all of it but we make it back
to the motel and it is still plenty warm.

The TV turned on and the heater turned up, we spend the rest
of our afternoon watching some movies and catching up on our blog posts and
reviews and Facebook of course. Along with this spacious apartment, we’ve also
gotten a very generous 2GB of internet and it allows us both to be online at
the same time as well.

Dinner done, I snuggle under a throw that is on the couch
and read while Bob gets a good dose of TV sitcoms. The electric blankets are
turned on to warm the bed—we each have our own control, and it isn’t long
before we tuck cold feet into the preheated sheets hoping for a warmer and less wet day
tomorrow.